John Singleton's children and his mother are gearing up for a court battle over his will.
The children's argument is simple: the will is outdated, as it was drafted and signed in 1993 when the famed director only had one child, Justice. When John died on April 28 at the age of 51 following a stroke, he had seven children, six of whom were unaccounted for in the will.
TMZ said John's children have retained lawyers to fight over their father's estate, which is reportedly worth $35 million.
John lived in California, and under the state's law, they may have a legal claim to a portion of his estate because, despite not being born yet, they were not specifically disinherited in the will when John signed it.
Last week, John's mother, Sheila, the executor of the will, filed the legal documents in court and his assets were listed just shy of $4 million, meaning about $31 million is most likely in a trust, which doesn't have to go through probate court.
It's not known who gets what in the trust.
What is clear, though, is that at least one of John's children doesn't trust Sheila.
While John was still in the hospital following a "major stroke," Sheila filed for a temporary conservatorship so that she could make John's medical and financial decisions for him.
John, she added in her court filing, was involved in "several business projects and was prepared to sign a lucrative settlement agreement" at the end of the month.
John's daughter Cleopatra, though, fought the conservatorship and accused his mother of trying to cut the director's seven children out of his estate.
"My grandmother's intentions toward my father and his children are disturbing," Cleopatra wrote in her response to the court filing. "She cannot be [a] conservator of his person or his estate."
A conservatorship is no longer relevant now that the Oscar-nominated director has passed away.
Still, that doesn't mean a fight isn't brewing. TMZ noted on Tuesday that in addition to challenging the will, the kids could file a separate lawsuit if they have issues over the remaining $31 million that's likely in a trust. A lawsuit, however, doesn't just mean the children would be fighting Sheila, but it could also mean that they battle against each other.